£7.20 For Cleaners?

Posted in Tubeworker's blog on ,

The RMT has announced a 'victory'. Cleaners on lines formerly maintained by Metronet will be paid £7.20 p/h when TfL takes over the contract.

It is progress that the RMT has got Ken Livingstone to promise this money, and this should be publicised by all staff to recruit cleaners into the union. But Ken Livingstone has been publicly committed to the London Living Wage of £7.20 for months, and he has agreed with the RMT's demands. The problem has been getting Ken to deliver.

A promise from a slippery character like Livingstone is not the same as a pay rise in the bank. As soon as the RMT announced the £7.20, Ken's office was apparently on the phone, backtracking.

What has Ken actually promised? Is he just going to enforce the £7.20 by having more control over the cleaning companies? That is not the same as removing contractors and bringing the cleaning back in house, which is the RMT's end goal.

For months, the RMT and T&G have been moving towards joint strike action against all the cleaning companies on the Underground, demanding £7.20 p/h, sick and holiday pay, 28 days holiday and free travel. A lot of cleaners are eager to strike, having paid their dues and seen little action since they joined.

A strike by cleaners on the Underground would show their bosses just how important their undervalued, underpaid job really is. Other grades would see their importance and have the chance to show support by refusing to drive trains, or open stations, on health and safety grounds. It could be a really powerful action, and would ensure no cleaner is left out of the pay rise. The Metronet deal only covers 2/3 of the Underground, and Tubelines staff need results too.

The promise from Ken shows that he is willing to move, but this should not deter the RMT and T&G from going ahead with action that could win pay justice for all Underground cleaners.

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